Exodus Guitarist Gary Holt Checks In

Exodus guitarist Gary Holt has checked in with some information regarding the bands next studio album and his recent guitar endorsement deal. The message reads as follows:

"Hey everyone, how's it going! Sorry about the lack of updates lately, but it is summer, after all!

"First off, I'd like to announce that after six years or so have parted ways with Bernie Rico Jr. guitars. Bernie has been awesome, and I have nothing but thanks for all he's done and they awesome guitars he has built for me for so long, but it was time to move in another direction. So with that, I am now pleased to announce that I have moved to Schecter guitars! They have been making some of the greatest guitars for as long as I can remember and I am stoked to be joining the family. The Hellraiser V I have is one of the best sounding and playing guitars I have ever owned, and we have been talking about doing something VERY sick! Can't get enough of playing this thing, and the best part is, unlike the Rico's they are affordable and within the reach of just about anyone. No bullshit though, this thing kills!

"And it's been getting a lot of playing time, since we are in full riff mode for the next record and making all the necessary plans to get the ball rolling. In between now and then, we have some more shows to play(Japan and South America with Kreator!) so keeping busy is the name of the game.

i own a hellraiser c-7 and its crap the neck is fuc king huge and i cant get low or even medium-high string action without insane amount of fret buzz... bottom line they are cheap a$$ korean guitars that look exspensive but suck a$$ the best thing about it is the emg pickups and the grover hardware... i tried to return it but event though i did b4 the 90 day deadline they refused it and sent it back with no explanation other than a "sorry we cant except it"... i hate it so much worst gear ever... he will be calling rico soon beggin for his forgivness.... has anyone else had this problem from schecter or did i just have bad luck? either way its ibanez and esp for this guy now... maybe a parker fly would be nice?

I have a Schecter Hellraiser C-1 and it's hands down the best guitar I've played. Not sure what the seven string is like though so can't really comment Supastan.

I agree I get a little bit of buzz on low action and I didn't get an FR which I regretted, but still beats any Jackson or Ibanez to me. Maybe if you're wanting to play Korn or something on a seven string buy Ibanez but I don't know...

i shouldnt have a prb with it jeff loomis plys them all the time...korn?!?!yea right.i dont know why but that was somewhat offensive. maybe i just got sh** guitar and i dont think youve ever played a prestige model ibanez if you think the schecters are better the attention to detail is incrediable and even on the lowest of string action i go no buzz at all but alas it was out of my price range and the hellraiser is beautiful and i couldnt pass up the set neck... i dont know though... to each their own...but after purchasing this POS ill never buy schecter again..ill give you the jackson thing though i played a few of those (soloist and king V) and they were horrible..sounded great through an amp but the thing sounded mute unplugged and the fret buzz was horrible.. i wish i could get a ibanez nek on a ESP body or a Caparison... im mainly dissapointed with the customer service i recieved it was nonexist really maybe if i had a better nek i would like it everyone swears by schecters but i cant recomend them at all

Supastan & Cynic, it depends so much on the actual setup of the guitar and what type of frets have been installed. Fret buzz is not a "flaw" in any particular guitar, but a question of setup and how worn the fret wires are (but yes true, most cheapo guitars dont allow low action)

On Jackson guitars, as an example, fret burners like Alexi Laiho and Roope Latvala have based their entire playing styles on the Jackson RR V and the 80s Jackson Boost active circuit. On the RRs you can literally let your fingers "walk" on the fretboard.

On Ibanezes, once again, the fret buzz can be eliminated (any Ibanez user will tell u that Ibanez stock frets wear out quick!) but whats more annying about Ibanezes is the kinda thin "crunchy" middly tone that really puts out/amplifies any fret buzz there is.

Overall, I think Schecters are brilliant guitars. In terms of price/value, better than Ibanezes (perhaps only by stock electronics, though)

What I meant is that Korn is the artist who immediately pops to mind when I think of 7 string Ibanez.

I'm not saying the Hellraiser is the best guitar out there or better than Ibanez, I'm just saying I think the Hellraiser is a great guitar - especially as Jamez mentions considering the price. You seem to be judging a lot on the fret buzz so I'm guessing you downtune a lot, I don't which goes to show people like different guitars for different reasons. Good luck for future guitars!

Cheers Branded.One thing that should be added here (although a bit obvious) is that a great guitar doesnt necessarily cost great amounts. John5 just rocked his 500-600 dollar Ibanezes with Manson for years and the classic example is of course Eddie Van Halen. EVH played his homemade guitars and torn apart Kramers for 20years before going for Musicman/Ernie Ball customs and later developed the Peavey Wolfgang signature model. And... well, let me ask anyone here, does EVH sound any better now, or can anyone here tell a difference when he´s playing his signature models OR his old "stripe" guitars?

Jamez: Agreed. I've taken POS firewood pawn shop guitars and turned them into amazing guitars. It's all in the set up and what you learn along the way tinkering with your axe. Fret buzz can easily be eliminated with a file and a little knowledge of truss rod adjustments.

i feel like a big douchebag right now and thought you guys might get a good laugh out of it... after the conversation with cynic and a few of my freinds that swear by these guitars as well i thought "why not try to get advice from someone who plays the same thing" so in a what i thought was a one in amillion shot i emailed jeff loomis through my space...i explained my situation in detail and i got a reply..it was simply "Buy smaller strings, thanx and keep in touch"... the one thing i never even thought about worked perfect.... i feel like an a$$ ive had this guitar a year now spent at least 100-200 trying to figure sh** out and it wa my strings...our local tech didnt even think of that and he laughed at me too(im laughin now because he just lost a loyal customer) but yea its been a few hours and my guitar sounds great and i have no buzz at all.i knew it couldnt so i apologize to shecter because it was my ignorance not my guitar ...Blindgreed: cmon dont you think i thought about truss rod and bridge adjustments? i was just getting ready to get my guitr refretted because of my problems....i just noticed no one else thought of smaller strings either, though everyone including myself thought it was a major problem and it was just my big ole honking strings and thanxs for the advice peeps have a good laugh on me

I personally wouldn't opt for smaller strings. I like the tone of the gauge I use. And BTW Supastan, I didn't say anything about your bridge adjustment because you already stated that you had done what you could. I was referring to the act of filing your frets down a touch and adjusting your truss rod to match the fret work.

LOL! You emailed Jeff Loomis and he solved your issue, now that is a story to tell your grand kids about.

Hey man I wouldn't say at all you're ignorant, guitars are complex as hell beasts and finding info on them is tough. I know only a little about tech stuff with guitars but what I do know is that knowledge about these things is best gained from knowledgeable people - and who better than Jeff Loomis!

my bad blindgreed. I had power slinkys on it so going down a little hasnt been a prblm so far it kinda feels better .a big issue for me is living in a small town i dont get to be picky with strins unless i order them online the music store here sells fender and ernie ball exclusivly my all time faves are kurley kues...and hell yea i emailed him he was the only person i could think of that played them and with myspace it is easy as hell to get one on one with our musical inspirations i didnt think it would be that easy but i encourage everyone to do things like that who would know better than a person that takes that gear on the road 200 days a year... im still on cloud 9 just because of the reply....it kinda made me feel like an a$$ it was short and sweet... after seeing nevermore a couple years ago i was super exicted to meet jeff and i asked him "how do you play like that" just a dumbass fan question he looked at me a said "i use my hands and practice" so i should of expected that response when email him he takes the magical rockstar moment out of thing like that..i guess it would of been silly to assume he would say "i have magical power and use the pick of destiny" but damn you get all hyped up for this grand revelation and he just lays it on you simple and sweet

Supastan: Trial and error is how I learned. For future reference, MU has a forum section for musicians secrets. It might not be a bad way to go about getting advice for future dilemmas or projects. Cheers!